British Museum makes 1.9M images available for free (ianvisits.co.uk)

Article summary

The British Museum has made 1.9 million images of its collection available for free online under a Creative Commons license, allowing for non-commercial use. The images can be downloaded directly from the museum's website, and users are required to credit the British Museum. The museum's online collection includes famous objects such as the Rosetta Stone and the Parthenon Sculptures. The move is part of the museum's efforts to make its collection more accessible during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Main themes

• museum collections
• Creative Commons licensing
• cultural heritage
• public domain
• non-commercial use
• cultural repatriation

What commenters say

• The use of a non-commercial Creative Commons license excludes commercial use and may limit the usefulness of the images for certain purposes, such as Wikipedia articles.
• Some argue that the museum's images should be in the public domain, as the original works are no longer under copyright.
• Others believe that the museum has the right to control the use of its images and that the non-commercial license is a reasonable compromise.
• The licensing decision has sparked debate about the balance between preserving cultural heritage and generating revenue for museums.
• Some commentators argue that the museum's decision is motivated by a desire to restrict access to culture and generate revenue, rather than to promote the public good.
• Others see the move as a positive step towards increasing access to cultural artifacts, but believe that the licensing terms could be more permissive.
• The discussion also touches on the issue of cultural repatriation and the ethics of museums holding artifacts taken from other countries without permission.